Banishment & Redemption: A Pony Tale
by MysticGuitar
Summary: Insulted, ashamed and feeling more depressed than ever, Darkened Bliss was banished out into the depths of the Everfree Forest. However, she'll quickly discover that not everything is as it seems. Can she make it back to Ponyville, or will the tricks of the forest take a hold of her sanity, thrusting her mind deeper into chaos? (warning: this is a dark fic)
1. The Unending Path

The trees surrounded me, darkness filling my eyes as the moon above vanished from sight. I was in the darkest section of the Everfree Forest, completely alone and miles away from Ponyville. Cast away as a freak of nature, I no longer had a place to call home. To think that this was nothing more than a minor misunderstanding. They feared me, not because I was a force of evil, or enjoyed hurting others. No, they cast me away because of my appearance. You see, I have a very slender body, and a single colour coat and mane darker than night itself. My eyes are a dark shade of red, with purple and green to add a unique reflection whenever they are hit by the light of day, whereas they glow a deathly red by the light of the moon.

It has been said that my eyes are, at least during the day, the most beautiful eyes in Ponyville. Even Rarity commented on their beauty... That is, before she realized just how much of a demon I truly am. While she was generous enough to overlook my deformed body, the instant she glanced upon my devilish red eyes at night, she let out an ungodly shriek, and ran away without looking back. If you saw me with your own two eyes, you wouldn't hesitate to run in the other direction, either.

I'd rather not describe the way I look in full detail, but try to imagine a snake, griffon and pony hybrid. A creature with the body of a pegasus, tail of a snake and hooves with talons protruding from them. "I'm a monster, and nothing more..."

Just then, my thought was interrupted by an unnerving gust of wind blowing throughout the Everfree Forest, causing the leaves on all of the nearby trees to rustle against themselves, creating a rather eerie sound in the process. However, unlike the typical rustling of leaves back at Ponyville, and elsewhere in Equestria, the sound of the leaves within the darkness of the forest seemed to be demonic in nature. I could even hear a faint whispering in the darkness around me, as if the trees were attempting to communicate with the lost souls of the forest. "This place is truly haunted" I spoke to no one in particular, not quite realizing that I was indeed talking to the forest itself.

I've managed to subconsciously walk along this seemingly unending path for seven hours, with little to no rest. I was absolutely exhausted, and emotionally strained. Yet I knew that if I were to rest along the side of this path, my fate would be sealed away by the forest for the rest of eternity. The dangers lurking through the darkness would surely envelop me, devouring my tainted soul. I suppose that is what an abomination like myself deserves; to die a cold and sour death by the hoof or horn of the monsters just outside of my visions reach. "It's actually a rather poetic way to die" I thought to myself, only for a booming voice to enter into my mind, startling me out of my depressive trance.

"**HOW CAN YOU SERIOUSLY BELIEVE YOU ARE WORTHLESS?**" said the mysterious voice in my head. While it was loud, it did not seem to be violent or otherwise angry. If anything, the voice was calm and sincere, with a hint of worry on the side. "**DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND HOW... HUH?... OH**, _Uh, my apologies, I wasn't aware of how loud I was projecting myself. I do hope you can forgive me_." the voice spoke more softly, stuttering with a hint of embarrassment filling its' tone.

I, being nothing more than an insignificant black coated abomination, did not know how to react to this new inner voice. I felt scared, yet oddly calm, as if somewhere deep within my mind, I knew that this was not a voice to fear, but a voice to trust. Still, I couldn't entirely shake away the feeling that there was something sinister to this entire scene. As if the entity behind the voice was attempting to deceive me into trusting it, like it was performing an act, while I was the mare among the audience. "_Please, do not think that way_" the entity began to speak, as if capable of reading my thoughts. "_You are not a mere stage, nor am I performing an act. My name is Luna, sister and co-ruler of Equestria. I do believe we have met once before, back when you were in Ponyville. Do you remember? You and I met at the library, along with Twilight and her closest friends_."

Yes, that's right. We did happen to stumble across each others path, having met both of the princesses, Celestia and Luna, back at Twilight Sparkle's library. Though honestly, that feels like another lifetime ago, almost as if it had all just been a nightmare of which I dreamt up.

"_It was no nightmare, nor was it a dream. Now tell me, why did you leave your friends behind, and enter into the Everfree Forest?_" the same voice spoke, which I now recognized to be that of Princess Luna herself.

"I was kicked out of town. They thought I was a monster, or a demon. They just kept screaming at me, telling me to leave and never come back!" I screamed at the forest while tears began to form in my eyes. "They kept calling me names! They just... they didn't accept me for who I was under my hideous appearance, and judged me based on that alone!"

By this point, the tears that were slowly forming in my eyes had begun to flow rapidly down my darkened face, causing my eyes to burn mildly. Before I was able to formulate another thought, Luna began to speak.

"_You are not hideous, nor are you a monster. You are simply something new, and it may take other ponies a while to get used to your appearance. I of all know just how painful being feared by others can feel, especially when they fear you for the way you look, rather than_-" she paused as a sadness took over her voice, the memories of Nightmare Moon resurfacing. "_As you can imagine, I myself have had my difficulties. Ponies everywhere feared me, and it took them a while to accept me as Princess Luna, rather than Nightmare Moon._" Luna spoke with a sense of pride in her voice at having been forgiven by her subjects. "_You shall be accepted within Ponyville, just as I was accepted to my throne_."

After finishing her final sentence, a white light with brilliant purple hues formed a sphere around where I stood. This light was blindingly beautiful, but also proved to be quite painful to my naked eyes, forcing me to shut them.

Upon opening my eyes, I instantly noticed that the darkness of the forest had been replaced by the brightness of day. Before me stood a large tree, which I quickly recognized as Twilight's home and library. I was once again in Ponyville, and while I was quite thankful to be back, I also feared for my life, not knowing how others were going to react to my sudden presence. To my relief, nopony appeared to be around, allowing me to silently and carefully enter into the library without being detected.

Once inside, I noticed Twilight sitting at her usual desk, deeply distracted by the book placed before her. She didn't appear to notice my entry, but soon called out for Spike.

"Spike, could you please come here for a moment? I require your help with something important!"

"Yeah yeah, Twilight. I'm com-" before Spike was able to fully reply, he noticed me standing in the doorway. "Huh? What the HAY are you?!"

Spike's reaction seemed to shock Twilight, but before she could turn around to properly lecture her little assistant on his unexpected outburst, she noticed me standing silently by the doorway.

I didn't know what to say or do, so I just stood there, frozen in place. I expected to be attacked, or perhaps yelled at. However, neither one of us did anything but stare blankly at the other. No words were spoken, no actions were taken. We both just stood there, looking into each others eyes. It honestly felt like a staring contest, though this was no game.

Thankfully, Spike decided to speak up, breaking our trance. "Uh, Twilight? What are you two doing?" He asked with his right claw over his mouth, trying to hold back laughter at the rather unusual scene before him.

Twilight hesitated to reply, while keeping her eyes pinned against my own. Whether this was out of fear or curiosity, I wouldn't know, though she did reflect both emotions deep within her eyes.

"Spike. Would you mind getting the others?" She finally spoke, still locked within our gaze.

Spike, unknowing if I was a friend or foe, moved cautiously around the library so he could do what he was told. "Sure thing, Twilight! Though, Rainbow might be a little harder to find..." His voice trailed off as he made his way out of the library and into the streets of Ponyville.

After ten minutes of looking at each other, myself out of fear, and Twilight out of caution, Spike finally returned with five other ponies by his side. Twilight continued to stare me down, even after the arrival of her friends.

"So Twi, what's the big emergency?" Rainbow asked, only to stop dead in her tracks after glimpsing upon the figure that stood before her, otherwise known as me. The next thing I knew, I was being pinned to the hardwood floor by the fast flying Pegasus. She looked down at me with an unusually playful smirk, causing my body heat to rise and my mind to buzz at the possible thoughts going through the blue blurs head. You see, while most ponies were afraid of me, and did everything in their power to avoid me, Rainbow Dash was different. She actually thought I was, in her words, _"Really. Freaking. Awesome." _She was the closest thing to a friend I have ever had, possibly even going beyond the friendship line and into something... No, she would never think of me in that way, as I was still a monster. _"I need to snap out of it" _I thought to myself while loosely shaking my head to try and clear my mind.

"Oh darling, I can't believe how very rude I was to you." Rarity spoke with a strong sadness in her voice, clearly remembering the way she acted after seeing my glowing red eyes for the first time. "Will you ever forgive me?"

As if on queue, all six of the ponies present began to sob loudly, while practically chanting "forgive us" into the otherwise silent library, and just like that, the heaviness in the air evaporated away, and was replaced by unending happiness and joy. The library was full of party decorations, and confetti was falling from the ceiling. I was accepted into their circle of friendship, and was no longer an outcast. I was no longer a monster in their eyes. I was no longer alone...

I lived happily ever after in Ponyville!

* * *

Except, none of that actually happened. I was still in the Everfree Forest, having fallen asleep by the side of the unending path of which I walked.


	2. The Tent

A dream, a mere dream has managed to bring so much happiness to my otherwise depressed existence. Yet, now that I am once again awake, laying at the side of this darkened path, I felt an uneasy feeling overcome me. While I was indeed banished to spend the rest of my sorry eternity alone within the Everfree Forest, I now felt as if there was a part of me missing. Like a part of my soul was left behind, granted some form of salvation from the darkness. That single and rather simplistic dream had managed to sink its' way deep within my subconscious, giving me a new sense, a new will to survive.

No matter how silly, or how stupid the thought may be, I no longer wanted to die. I wanted to live a life worth living… which unfortunately doesn't include the life that I was given. I'm an absolute abomination. A sinful creature destined to cause harm, whether by my own conscious intentions, or by appearance alone. I was not a creature to love, but a creature to fear. A creature that deserves to be killed, possibly tortured by the hooves of Celestia herself. I'm a joke, an ugly joke. "Why the buck was I born?!" I thought loudly to myself.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, I decided to take a stance, and begin my travel along this path once more. To my surprise, however, the path was no longer a mere dirt road through the forest. It had somehow managed to become a large road, capable of allowing for multiple ponies to easily travel across it. While I did have the sense to question how a small dirt path could become a larger path quite literally overnight, I decided it wasn't that big of an issue, and against my better judgement, I began to trot along the path at a steady pace, eagerly awaiting whatever lies ahead.

After only two minutes of trotting, I began to notice that the forest was getting brighter, and that there were fewer trees to block the light. While still a forest by any respect, this area of the Everfree seemed to be more pleasant. Thanks mostly in part to the added light on the environment, I was able to see far greater detail in my surroundings. The trees themselves appeared to have very thick trunks, and the leaves were a light purple hue with red spots near the stem. The path itself was a dark brown, almost muddy in colour, though it didn't have the texture of dirt, or even mud. It felt almost alien beneath my hooves, though the coolness it provided was admittedly quite pleasant.

Shrubs and small bushes appeared to be glistening in the morning dew just beyond the paths edge, providing a very magical atmosphere around me. Again, I felt the will to live overcome me, and my depressive thoughts seemed to melt away by my beautiful surroundings. Everything felt perfect. It felt calm and serene. Like everything within this world was suddenly fine. I felt... Happy. Truly happy. Truly... Alone, yet also happy. I felt... Broken, and calm, and warm. I... Felt confused, yet equally sure of myself. I...

"What the hay is happening to me?!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, prompting the forest to carry my voice in an echo, only for it to morph into a form of twisted laughter before fading away entirely. "That's unnatural" I thought to myself while flattening my ears against my head in fear. "I must be losing my mind. Come on now, hold it together DB."

Further down the path stood an unusual structure, almost like a tent from a carnival, or a circus. Though, this tent did not express the typically happy atmosphere of a circus, and seemed to reflect a more twisted persona.

Just as I finished that thought, another gust of wind blew throughout the Everfree Forest, and the magic-like clearing that once surrounded me vanished away into darkness, being nothing more than an illusion. However, the tent in the distance, which seemed to be illuminated by an unnatural source of green and purple light, did not vanish away from view. Almost as if it was urging me to attend its twisted show of horror and sin. With little choice but to continue down this darkened path, I decided to succumb to the desire of this unnatural carnival, and attend the show.

Another gust of wind blew through the forest, and more laughter could be heard around me, as I neared the entrance to this demonic tent. However, now that I was standing directly in front of it, I could clearly make out the design and general shape of the structure. The green and purple lights were of a magical origin, hovering around the tent like spotlights, giving it an unnatural glow in the otherwise dark forest. The tent had a green and purple striped design, with splotches of red littered all over it, almost like... blood?

As I was about to enter, I heard somepony call out my name. "Darkened Bliss, is that you?" The pony spoke with a voice I somehow recognized, until it hit me. This voice belonged to Rainbow Dash, and appeared to come from inside of the tent, calling out to me. "It is you! I thought I saw you coming this way. So, uh. What the hay are you doing way out here, Bliss?" Rainbow inquired, though there was a slight whimper to her voice, making her sound almost monotone. "I bet you're here to see the show! Seriously, I'd recommend going in as soon as possible. It's really freaking awesome..." She said, as her voice began to trail off. However, I heard her say one final thing before vanishing back into the tent. "It's seriously to die for"

I followed her into the tent without much of a thought, almost as if the tent was controlling me, calling me in. My judgement was seriously impaired by some unknown force, possibly the forest itself being responsible for my nearing insanity. But you know what? I don't care. I won't care, for as long as I remain alive, I shall be a sin of nature. If this forest wishes to kill me, so be it. I deserve it, don't I? And so, I mindlessly entered the tent, only for my eyes to be engulfed by darkness. Except, it was beyond mere darkness, this was darker than night itself. To top that off, the entire room was void of all sound. Dark and soundless. If not for the horrid smells filling my nostrils, I would have assumed that this was death.

Before I was able to take another step, everything around me became a blur of white, and a loud buzzing filled my ears, pounding my head into numbness. It was as if every single light in Ponyville had suddenly turned on at the same time.

After my eyes adjusted to the newly lit room, and the buzzing had morphed into a mild form of music, I noticed that I was standing in the centre of the tent. The floor was purple and black in colour, and seemed to have a swirl design that formed a type of optical illusion, while the walls were the same green and purple as they were on the outside, except the internal walls appeared to be washed out in colour. The room itself was littered with bodies, presumably the victims that came before me. However, it wasn't long until I started to recognise some of the mangled corpses, some of which were only fillies. Each and every corpse had a small face carved into the side of the body, covering the fur with blood, which has now mostly crusted over. After inspecting some of the fillies in the room, I noticed one filly in particular. She was just like the rest, except she had a face that seemed to go deeper into her side, carving her out as if a pumpkin on Nightmare Night. Her internal organs decorated her body, while a streak of wet blood was pooling in her eye sockets, eyes seemingly removed by some type of surgical device. However, given the fact that the blood is still relatively fresh, this filly was likely the latest to be murdered within the tent. This filly, who I've met a few times while in Ponyville, was always seen hanging around Rainbow Dash, and seemed to always be riding a scooter. Her name was Scootaloo, and before me is her managed body, severely deformed and brutalised.

"Pretty neat, huh?" A raspy voice spoke from behind me, sounding cold and emotionless. "That poor little filly just couldn't stay away from me. So, she decided to follow me into the forest, riding her scooter, without a single care of what may be lurking in the shadows. She ended up finding my tent, to which I kindly invited her in. Man, she was so ecstatic to be able to spend time with me, I just had to give her an extra special performance, which turned out to be awesome." Rainbow Dash said, eyes glancing between me and Scootaloo's mangled body. "I even tricked out her scooter, as a personal thanks for being so awesome and such a cool little friend." While saying this, she looked at the corner of the tent, just beside Scootaloo's corpse. Her scooter was propped up against a metallic table, though it took me a while to notice that the wheels had been replaced by something else. "Are those..."

"Yup! Pretty cool, right?" Rainbow said with a hint of demented enthusiasm. "Now, it took me a while to remove her eyes without fully damaging them, but once I got them out, using them as wheels was a fairly easy task. Fillies have surprisingly durable eyes. You can actually ride that thing!"

"She was also awake during the whole thing! Well, that is until she passed out, heh. She felt me inside her, tearing at her internal organs. Man, you have no idea how awesome it is to hear a little filly scream in pain! She kept begging me to stop, and just refused to believe that her idol would even attempt to hurt her! 'Rainbow, Rainbow, I thought you loved me, Rainbow' is all she kept screaming, in between cries. Seriously, it felt like I was flying! The thrill, the adrenaline." She paused for a moment, looking at me with an evil grin. "Now, I get to do the same to you, Darkened Bliss. To be killed by your only real friend. You know, there's something kinda poetic about that, but I really don't care for that kind of stuff."

I just stood there, unable to think or do anything. "I'm glad you ended up coming here, DB. Now, shall I start by cutting off your wi-"

* * *

Before she could finish her sentence, everything was gone. I was once again standing on the path, in the middle of the Everfree Forest. I was no longer surrounded by bodies, or horrible images of death and betrayal. I was simply alone. No tent, no lights, no Rainbow Dash. Just me, the forest, and the evils within.

"I really need to get out of here!"


	3. The Day Before the End

Author's Note: I've decided to split this chapter into two separate parts.

* * *

The path of which I walked continued to haunt me; tearing away at the innermost regions of my mind. It has been days since the tent had tried to overthrow me, to drown me within its river of blood. Days, and yet I still continued to walk. To hope for a future where I could be happy, wishing for the light of day to rescue my tormented soul.

But the Everfree was void of all light, with the darkness of the forest casting a permanent shade of death and despair. I knew that this would not end well for me, but I still had the pointless sense of hope.

Just outside of the Everfree, six worried residents of Ponyville stood in wait.

"Are you sure we can't just fly in there and rescue her, Twi?" asked the brave blue pegasus known as Rainbow Dash. "I mean, you've got me flying, you with your magic, Fluttershy can get some animals to help out, Applejack could buck some evil things, and I'm sure even Rarity could do something useful." Rainbow said while sticking her tongue out at the white unicorn known as Rarity, who simply _humphed_ as response.

"Yes, the forest is a very large place, Rainbow. It would take us all night to search the whole thing, even with the help of Fluttershy's animals. Plus, with little to no protection, well; it's just too dangerous." Twilight answered, her ears splayed back in sadness, and a massive frown stricken across her face.

"I know, Twi. Danger this, evil that. But come on! This is Darkened Bliss we're talking about! Don't we owe her more than simply sitting around, doing nothing?" asked an agitated Rainbow. "I mean, it was kinda our fault. We should be out there, Twi. We _need_ to be out there."

The pink party pony present known as Pinkie Pie nodded her approval, and began bouncing in place. This action seemed to give the other ponies a sense of courage, and one by one, they too began to nod their approval, siding with Rainbow Dash and her request to search for their friend.

"Then it's settled." Twilight said with a sigh. "I'll go get some supplies, and will write a letter to the Princess informing her of where we'll be going, just in case anything should happen."

Rainbow Dash took to the air in excitement. This was surely going to be one hay of an adventure, and all to rescue a friend. Right at this moment, she felt just like Daring Doo. Nothing could stop her from finding her friend. Nothing, not even Celestia herself. She loved Darkened Bliss, and they _would_ reunite. It was just a matter of time.

All six ponies started trotting in silence towards Twilight's library, so they could gather the much needed supplies to make their journey as safe as possible.

Rainbow took one last glance at the Everfree forest, a single thought on her mind.

_"Please don't be dead."_

Deep within the Everfree, Darkened Bliss felt an unusual sensation overcome her. It felt almost like a spark had attempted to ignite the embers of the eternal flame within the coldest regions of her soul. It was a pleasant feeling, though she was unsure as to why she felt it. What had she done to deserve this warmth? Was this the sign of good fortune, or a tale of a pony with no end? She was afraid to discover the answer, knowing full well that it wouldn't be pleasant.

She continued to walk down this path once more, a path of which she now considered to be the gateway to tartarus itself, for it showed no signs of mercy and all signs of sin.

She had come to accept the demons lurking through the shadows, and waited eagerly for them to make yet another twisted appearance. To give her yet another vision of death and decay. A part of her insane mind had even come to enjoy the illusions that the forest brought forth, as they were the only constant holding what thin thread of sanity that remained in her mind.

A calm wind blew throughout the Everfree Forest, causing the leaves on all of the nearby trees to rustle. Except, the echoing sounds of demonic laughter never followed with the breeze, nor did the wind itself carry an evil tune. It was just a breeze, a normal breeze of wind, like something you would find in the world surrounding the Everfree Forest.

Darkened Bliss was nearing the edge of the Everfree, and the forest wasn't trying to keep her within its sinful grasp.


End file.
